Method and apparatus for registration type addition for service negotiation

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method are provided for steering a PDU session associated with traffic routed to a selected UPF. The method includes receiving, from an AF entity, a first message including information for selecting a UPF entity for traffic routing of a terminal and information on a spatial condition associated with a location of the terminal; transmitting, to an SMF entity, a second message to receive information associated with the location of the terminal indicating that the terminal entered or left a specific area, the specific area being determined by the PCF entity based on the spatial condition; receiving, from the SMF entity, a third message including the information associated with the location of the terminal; and transmitting, to the SMF entity, a fourth message based on the information associated with the location of the terminal included in the third message, the fourth message including the information for selecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of the terminal.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/965,166, which was filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office onApr. 27, 2018, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to KoreanPatent Applications Nos. 10-2017-0054432 and 10-2017-0114984, which werefiled in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Apr. 27, 2017 andSep. 8, 2017, respectively, the entire disclosure of each of which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates generally to a method for selecting anon-3gpp interworking function (N3IWF) by a terminal while accessing a5G network through a non-3gpp access while the terminal is alreadyaccessed to the 5G network through a 3gpp access, and more particularlyan apparatus and method for steering a protocol data unit (PDU) sessionassociated with traffic routed to a selected user plane function (UPF).

2. Description of the Related Art

In order to meet increasing demands for wireless data traffic aftercommercialization of 4G communication systems, efforts have been made todevelop an improved 5G or pre-5G communication system. The 5G or pre-5Gcommunication system may also be referred to as a beyond 4G networkcommunication system or a post Long-Term Evolution (LTE) system.

In order to achieve high data rates, implementation of a 5Gcommunication system in an ultrahigh frequency (mmWave) band (e.g., a 60GHz band) has been considered. In order to mitigate a path loss of radiowaves and to increase transfer distances of the radio waves in theultrahigh frequency band, technologies such as beamforming, massivemultiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO), full dimension MIMO(FD-MIMO), array antennas, analog beamforming, and large scale antennasfor the 5G communication system have been discussed.

Further, for network improvements in the 5G communication system,technology developments have been made for an evolved small cell,advanced small cell, cloud radio access network (RAN), ultra-densenetwork, device to device communication (D2D), wireless backhaul, movingnetwork, cooperative communication, coordinated multi-points (CoMP), andreception interference cancellation. In addition, in the 5G system,hybrid frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation(QAM) (FQAM) and sliding window superposition coding (SWSC), whichcorrespond to advanced coding modulation (ACM) systems, and filter bankmulticarrier (FBMC), non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA), and sparsecode multiple access (SCMA), which correspond to advanced connectiontechnologies, have been developed.

Additionally, the Internet, which is a human centered connectivitynetwork where humans generate and consume information, is now evolvingto into the Internet of things (IoT), where distributed entities, i.e.,things, exchange and process information. The Internet of everything(IoE), which is a combination of the IoT technology and big dataprocessing technology through connection with a cloud server, has alsoemerged. As technology elements, such as sensing technology,wired/wireless communication, and network infrastructure, serviceinterface technology, and security technology, have been demanded forIoT implementation, a sensor network for machine-to-machine connection,machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, machine type communication(MTC), etc., have been recently researched.

An IoT environment may provide intelligent Internet technology servicesthat create a new value to human life by collecting and analyzing datagenerated among connected things. The IoT may be applied to a variety offields including a smart home, a smart building, a smart city, a smartcar or connected cars, a smart grid, health care, smart appliances, andadvanced medical services through convergence and combination betweenthe existing information technology (IT) and various industries.

Accordingly, various attempts have been made to apply the 5Gcommunication system to IoT networks. For example, technologies of asensor network, M2M communication, and MTC have been implemented bytechniques for beam-forming, MIMO, and array antennas, which correspondto the 5G communication technology. As the big data processingtechnology as described above, application of a cloud radio accessnetwork (RAN) would be an example of convergence between the 5Gtechnology and the IoT technology.

The 5G system is expected to support increased various services ascompared with the existing 4G system. For example, most representativeservices may be enhanced mobile broad band (eMBB), ultra-reliable andlow latency communication (URLLC), massive machine type communication(mMTC), evolved multimedia broadcast/multicast service (eMBMS), etc. Asystem providing the URLLC service may be referred to as “a URLLCsystem,” and a system providing the eMBB service may be referred to as“an eMBB system.”

SUMMARY

An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method for changinga slice of a terminal while the terminal is registered in a 5G corenetwork (CN) using a network slice service.

Further, if a terminal intends to access a 5G network through a non-3gppaccess in a state where the terminal is accessing the 5G network througha 3gpp access, the terminal selects an N3IWF, and attempts an access tothe 5G network through the selected N3IWF. In this case, depending on inwhat PLMN the terminal should discover and select the N3IWF during theselection of the N3IWF, it is determined whether registration of theterminal can be made using the same AMF through the 3gpp access and thenon-3gpp access. Accordingly, there is a need for schemes to grasp whatmethod the terminal discovers and selects the N3IWF through.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a 5G core networkthat configures as a task in a core network a function in which anapplication server (AS) providing a service to a terminal requests aspecific condition of the terminal from the core network, and automatesand processes the request from the terminal in accordance with alocation and a state of the terminal.

In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, a method isprovided for a policy control function (PCF) entity in a communicationsystem. The method includes receiving, from an application function (AF)entity, a first message including information for selecting a user planfunction (UPF) entity for traffic routing of a terminal and informationon a spatial condition associated with a location of the terminal;transmitting, to a session management function (SMF) entity, a secondmessage to receive information associated with the location of theterminal indicating that the terminal entered or left a specific area,the specific area being determined by the PCF entity based on thespatial condition; receiving, from the SMF entity, a third messageincluding the information associated with the location of the terminal;and transmitting, to the SMF entity, a fourth message based on theinformation associated with the location of the terminal included in thethird message, the fourth message including the information forselecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of the terminal.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a method isprovided for a session management function (SMF) entity in acommunication system. The method includes receiving, from a policycontrol function (PCF) entity, a first message to transmit informationassociated with a location of a terminal indicating that the terminalentered or left a specific area, the specific area being determined bythe PCF entity based on a spatial condition associated with the locationof the terminal; identifying the terminal entered or left the specificarea; transmitting, to the PCF entity, a second message including theinformation associated with the location of the terminal based on theidentification; and receiving, from the PCF entity, a third messageincluding information for selecting a user plane function (UPF) entityfor traffic routing of the terminal.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a policycontrol function (PCF) is provided, which includes a transceiver; and acontroller configured to receive, from an application function (AF)entity, via the transceiver, a first message including information forselecting a user plan function (UPF) entity for traffic routing of aterminal and information on a spatial condition associated with alocation of the terminal, transmit, to a session management function(SMF) entity, via the transceiver, a second message to receiveinformation associated with the location of the terminal indicating thatthe terminal entered or left a specific area, the specific area beingdetermined by the PCF entity based on the spatial condition, receive,from the SMF entity via the transceiver, a third message including theinformation associated with the location of the terminal, and transmit,to the SMF entity, via the transceiver, a fourth message based on theinformation associated with the location of the terminal included in thethird message, the fourth message including the information forselecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of the terminal.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a sessionmanagement function (SMF) is provided, which includes a transceiver; anda controller configured to receive, from a policy control function (PCF)entity, via the transceiver, a first message to transmit informationassociated with a location of a terminal indicating that the terminalentered or left a specific area, the specific area being determined bythe PCF entity based on a spatial condition associated with the locationof the terminal, identify the terminal entered or left the specificarea, transmit, to the PCF entity, via the transceiver, a second messageincluding the information associated with the location of the terminalbased on the identification, and receive, from the PCF entity, via thetransceiver, a third message including information for selecting a userplane function (UPF) entity for traffic routing of the terminal.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a registrationtype for changing a slice can be proposed.

Further, if a terminal intends to perform an access through a non-3gppaccess in a state where the terminal is registered through a 3gppaccess, it is determined whether the terminal registration can bemanaged using the same AMF in accordance with a method for selecting anN3IWF. Accordingly, resources can be efficiently managed in the 5Gnetwork, or it becomes possible to support a HO of a PDU session betweenthe non-3gpp access and the 3gpp access, and thus service support can besmoothly performed.

According to the present disclosure, a 5G core network configures afunction in which an AS providing a service to the terminal requests aspecific condition of the terminal in a bundle from the core network,and the core network automates and processes the request from theterminal in accordance with the location and the state of the terminal.Unlike a case where the core network notifies the AS of the terminalstate every time, and accordingly receives and processes the requestfrom the AS every time, according to the present disclosure, once thecore network configures a specific event for a specific terminal and acorresponding operation and rule, the core network can perform thecorresponding operation as soon as it grasps the terminal state, andthus can provide the service without separately depending on the requestfrom the AS. Accordingly, signaling between the AS and the core networkcan be reduced, and time required for providing the correspondingservice to the terminal can be shortened.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainembodiments of the present disclosure will be more apparent from thefollowing detailed description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an initial registrationwithout a temporary identifier (Temp-ID) process according to anembodiment;

FIG. 2 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an initial registrationwith a Temp-ID process according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are signal flow diagrams illustrating an initialregistration with an AMF relocation process according to an embodiment;FIG. 4 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a periodic tracking areaupdate (TAU) process according to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a TAU process according toan embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a TAU with a slice changeprocess according to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a network (NW)-triggeredslice change process according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a user equipment(UE)-triggered slice change process according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 illustrates a terminal accessing a 5G network of a PLMN through a3gpp access and a non-3gpp access according to an embodiment;

FIG. 10 illustrates a terminal accessing a 5G network of different PLMNsthrough a 3gpp access and a non-3gpp access according to an embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process in which aterminal selects an N3IWF to access a 5G network through a non-3gppaccess, when the terminal is in a home country, according to anembodiment;

FIG. 12 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process in which aterminal selects an N3IWF to access a 5G network through a non-3gppaccess, when the terminal is in a visited country, according to anembodiment;

FIG. 13 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process of transferringUE configuration information to a terminal according to an embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a procedure in which an AFprovides an event and a rule through a PCF, and the PCF applies them tomatch the event of a terminal, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a procedure in which an AFprovides an event and a rule through an NEF, and the NEF applies them tomatch the event of a terminal, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 16 illustrates a terminal according to an embodiment; and

FIG. 17 illustrates a base station according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In theaccompanying drawings, the same drawing reference numerals may be usedfor the same elements across various figures. Further, well-knownfunctions or configurations incorporated herein will be omitted to avoidobscuring the subject matter of the present disclosure in unnecessarydetail.

Although the terms used herein are defined in consideration of functionsin the embodiments, the terms may be changed according to the intentionof a user or an operator, or customs. Therefore, the present disclosureshould be understood, not simply by the terms used, but based on thecontents of the whole description of the present disclosure.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure described below, althoughconstituent elements included in the present disclosure may expressed ina singular form or in a plural form, such a singular or pluralexpression is selected to suit a situation presented for convenience inexplanation, and thus the present disclosure is not limited to suchsingular or plural constituent elements. Even plural constituentelements may be expressed in a singular form, and even a singleconstituent element may be expressed in a plural form.

Although communications standards organized by the 3GPP are referencedin describing embodiments of the present disclosure, the presentdisclosure may also be applied to other communication systems havingsimilar technical backgrounds or channel types, through slightmodifications thereof.

Herein, the terms slices, services, network slices, network services,application slices, and application services may be interchangeablyused.

Additionally, the terms “service” and “system” may be interchangeablyused herein.

Embodiment 1

If a specific condition is generated, a terminal (UE) 110 sends aregistration request message to an access and mobility managementfunction (AMF) 130 of a 5G core network (CN).

FIG. 1 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an initial registrationwithout a Temp-ID process according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 1 , indicates a case where a power of the terminal 110is turned on, or the terminal 110 detached from a core network is againattached to the core network.

The terminal 110 configures a registration type to “initialregistration” as it sends a registration request message to an AMF 130(through a base station (RAN) 120) (operations 165 and 170). In thiscase, if security-related information and a UE temporary ID(hereinafter, Temp-ID) received during previous registration are storedin the terminal 110 (160), the terminal 110 may include the storedTemp-ID in the registration request message. If the Temp-ID is includedin the registration request message, an international mobile subscriberidentity (IMSI) that is a permanent ID of the terminal 110 may not beincluded. In this case, network slice information that the terminal 110intends to use after accessing the 5G CN may be included in theregistration request message. That is, when the terminal 110 sends theregistration request message that does not include the IMSI, butincludes the Temp-ID, network slice selection assistance information(NSSAI) that is network slice information to be used by the terminal 110or requested NSSAI may be included in the registration request message.The AMF 130 having received the registration request message determinesslices to be provided to the terminal 110, i.e., allowed NSSAI, inconsideration of subscription information of the terminal 110, thepolicy of a mobile communication service provider, and a 5G RAN 120/CNnetwork situation, and transfers a registration accept message includingthe corresponding information to the terminal 110 (through the RAN 120)(operations 175 and 180).

FIG. 2 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an initial registrationwith a Temp-ID process according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 indicates the same case as the case of FIG. 1 in which the powerof the terminal 110 is turned on, or the terminal 110 detached from thecore network is again attached to the core network, but FIG. 2 furtherindicates a case where a Temp-ID allocated during the previousregistration and security information are not stored in the terminal 110(210).

The terminal 110 configures a registration type to “initialregistration” as it sends a registration request message to an AMF 130(through a base station (RAN) 120) (operations 220 and 230). Since theTemp-ID allocated during the previous registration is not stored in theterminal 110, the terminal 110 includes an IMSI in the registrationrequest message to be transmitted. The AMF 130 having received theregistration request message allocates the Temp-ID to the terminal 110,and sends a registration accept message including the Temp-ID to theterminal 110 (operations 240 and 250). Through the operations 220 to250, authentication and security setup between the terminal 110 and theCN are performed. Thereafter, a message that the terminal 110 sends to a5G RAN 120/CN 130 becomes an integrity protected NAS. The terminal 110includes slice information intended to be used in the registrationrequest message, and transmits the registration request message to theAMF 130 (operations 260 and 270). The registration type of theregistration request message in operations 260 and 270 is configured tobe different from the “initial registration” that is the registrationtype of the registration request message transmitted by the terminal inoperation 220. That is, examples of the different registration type maybe “service registration update”, “capability registration update”,“slice registration update”, and “service negotiation update”. Theregistration request message includes the Temp-ID allocated in operation250 and requested NSSAI that is slice information that the terminal 110intends to use. The AMF 130 having received the registration requestmessage determines slices to be provided to the terminal 110, that is,allowed NSSAI, in consideration of subscription information of theterminal 110, the policy of a mobile communication service provider, anda 5G RAN 120/CN network situation, and transfers a registration acceptmessage including the corresponding information to the terminal 110(operations 280 and 290).

FIGS. 3A and 3B are signal flow diagrams illustrating an initialregistration with an AMF relocation process according to an embodiment.Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate an AMF selection method of aRAN 120 and various embodiments in which a registration request messageis rerouted to a new AMF during a registration process as illustrated inFIG. 2 .

Referring to FIG. 3A, in operation 310, since the registration requestdoes not include information for AMF selection (e.g., Temp-ID andrequested NSSAI), the RAN 120 having received the registration requestmessage from the terminal 110 selects AMF1 130 based on load balancingand local policy (operation 315), and transmits the registration requestmessage to the AMF1 130 at operation 320. The AMF1 130 having receivedthe transferred registration request message allocates the Temp-ID tothe initially-connected terminal 110, and transmits a registrationaccept message including the corresponding Temp-ID to the terminal 110(operations 325 and 330). The terminal sends the registration requestmessage to the AMF for slice usage, and the corresponding registrationrequest message to be transmitted to the RAN 120 includes the Temp-IDallocated from the AMF1 130 and requested NSSAI that is sliceinformation that the terminal 120 desires to use (operation 335). TheRAN 120 having received the registration request message selects the AMFusing the information included in the corresponding message (operation340). In FIGS. 3A and 3B, three kinds (options) of AMF selection methodsare illustrated.

Option 1 and option 2 correspond to the RAN 120 selecting the AMF inview of the Temp-ID included in the registration request message. Option3 corresponds to the RAN 120 selecting the AMF in view of the requestedNSSAI included in the registration request message.

In option 1 and option 2, the RAN 120 transfers the registration requestmessage through selection of the related AMF in view of the Temp-IDincluded in the message and in view of an AMF group, AMF group ID, orAMF ID included in the Temp-ID (operations 351 and 361). In this case,since the AMF allocated with the Temp-ID is the AMF1 130, AMF1 130 isselected, or the message is transferred to the AMF of the AMF group towhich the AMF1 130 belongs. The AMF 130 having received the registrationrequest message at operation 351 or 361 or the AMF of the AMF group towhich the AMF1 130 belongs determines allowed NSSAI which is sliceinformation that can be provided to the terminal 110 based on therequested NSSAI included in the registration request message,subscription information of the terminal 110, and the policy of a mobilecommunication service provider. If the AMF1 130 or the AMF of the AMFgroup to which the AMF1 130 belongs is unable to provide thecorresponding slice (allowed NSSAI), the message is forwarded to anotherAMF2 135 that can provide the corresponding slice. Operation 353corresponds to a case where the AMF1 130 directly reroutes the messageto the AMF2 135, and operations 362 and 363 correspond to a case wherethe AMF1 130 reroutes the message to the AMF2 135 through the RAN 120.At operations 353, 362, and 363, a reroute message includes theregistration request message sent by the terminal 110 and the allowedNSSAI. The AMF2 135 having received the reroute message processes theregistration request message included in the reroute message. Theallowed NSSAI information can be corrected based on the subscriptioninformation of the terminal 110, and the policy of the mobilecommunication service provider. That is, the slice to be provided to theterminal 110 is finally decided. If necessary, a new Temp-ID may beallocated. The AMF2 135 transmits to the terminal 110 a registrationaccept message including the finally decided allowed NSSAI and a newTemp-ID if a Temp-ID is newly allocated (operations 353, 354, 364, and365).

In option 3, the RAN 120 transfers the registration request messagethrough selection of the related AMF that can provide the correspondingslice in view of the requested NSSAI included in the message (operation371). In this case, the AMF2 135 is selected. The AMF2 135 havingreceived the registration request message requests terminal relatedinformation from the AMF1 130 allocated to the corresponding terminal110 in view of the Temp-ID included in the message (operation 372). TheAMF1 130 provides the terminal related information (UE context, MMcontext, and SM context) to the AMF2 135 (operation 373). The AMF2 135determines the allowed NSSAI which is slice information that can beprovided to the terminal 110 based on the requested NSSAI included inthe registration request message, subscription information of theterminal 110, and the policy of a mobile communication service provider.If necessary, a new Temp-ID may be allocated. The AMF2 135 transmits tothe terminal 110 a registration accept message including the finallydecided allowed NSSAI and a new Temp-ID if a Temp-ID is newly allocated(operations 374 and 375).

FIG. 4 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a periodic TAU processaccording to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 4 , a time set in a periodic update timer of theterminal 110 elapses (operation 410), and the terminal 110 sends aregistration request message to an AMF 130 (through a RAN 120)(operations 420 and 430). The terminal 110 configures a registrationtype to “periodic registration update” in the registration requestmessage. Then, in response to this, the AMF 130 may transmit aregistration accept message to the terminal 110 (operations 440 and450).

FIG. 5 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a TAU process according toan embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 5 the terminal 110 sends a registration requestmessage when the terminal 110 moves and enters into an area that is notin a tracking area identity (TAI) list (operation 510). The terminal 110configures a registration type to “mobility registration update” assensing the registration request message (operations 520 and 530).

If the existing AMF supporting the terminal 110 is changed from an oldAMF 135 to a new AMF 130, the new AMF 130 requests terminal informationfrom the old AMF 135 (operation 540). The old AMF 135 may providenetwork slice information in addition to UE context, MM context, and SMcontext that are terminal related information (operation 550). Thenetwork slice information may include requested NSSAI previouslyrequested by the terminal 110 (i.e., requested NSSAI sent by theterminal 110 to the old AMF 135 during registration) and allowed NSSAIinformation provided by the old AMF 135 to the terminal 110.

If the existing AMF supporting the terminal 110 is maintained as it is,the new AMF 130 and the old AMF 135 of FIG. 5 correspond to the sameAMF, and thus operations 540 and 550 are omitted. That is, the new AMF130 has information related to the terminal 110 and network sliceinformation.

The new AMF 130 allocates a new registration area (TAI list) to theterminal 110. Further, the new AMF 130 determines the allowed NSSAIwhich is slice information that can be provided to the terminal 110based on slice information received from the old AMF 135, subscriptioninformation of the terminal 110, and the policy of a mobilecommunication service provider, and transmits the allowed NSSAI to theterminal 110 (operations 560 and 570).

Three kinds of allowed NSSAI determined by the new AMF 130 are possible.First is determined based on slices that can be provided by the AMF 130in a registration area newly allocated to the terminal 110 and thesubscription information of the terminal 110. For example, if theterminal 110 can subscribe and use slice 1, slice 2, slice 3, and slice4, and the AMF 130 can currently provide slice 1, slice 2, slice 3, andslice 5, the final allowed NSSAI may include slice 1, slice 2, and slice3. In this case, slice information received from the old AMF 135 inoperation 550 is not used.

Second is determined based on slices that can be provided by the AMF 130in a registration area newly allocated to the terminal 110, thesubscription information of the terminal 110, and the allowed NSSAIreceived from the old AMF 135. For example, if the terminal 110 cansubscribe and use slice 1, slice 2, slice 3, and slice 4, the AMF 130can currently provide slice 1, slice 2, slice 3, and slice 5, and theallowed NSSAI received from the old AMF 135 includes slice 3 and slice4, the final allowed NSSAI includes slice 3. In this case, the allowedNSSAI received from the old AMF 135 may be information included in theregistration request message sent by the terminal 110 in operations 520and 530, or may be information brought from the old AMF 135 in operation550.

Third is determined based on slices that can be provided by the AMF 130in a registration area newly allocated to the terminal 110, thesubscription information of the terminal 110, and the requested NSSAI.For example, if the terminal 110 can subscribe and use slice 1, slice 2,slice 3, and slice 4, the AMF 130 can currently provide slice 1, slice2, slice 3, and slice 5, and the requested NSSAI received from the oldAMF 135 includes slice 2, slice 3, and slice 4, the final allowed NSSAIincludes slice 2 and slice 3. In this case, the requested NSSAI may be anewly requested NSSAI included in the registration request sent by theterminal 110 in operations 520 and 530, or may be requested NSSAIpreviously requested by the terminal 110 and received by the new AMF 130from the old AMF 135 in operation 550 (i.e., requested NSSAI sent by theterminal 110 to the old AMF during registration).

The finally decided allowed NSSAI sent in operations 560 and 570 may bethe same as or different from the slices previously allocated and usedby the terminal 110 (i.e., allowed NSSAI that the terminal 110 receivedfrom the old AMF 135 during registration in the old AMF 135).

If the allowed NSSAI finally decided by the new AMF 130 is the same asthe allowed NSSAI that the existing old AMF 135 allocated to theterminal 110, the new AMF 130 may not include the allowed NSSAI in theregistration accept message. That is, the terminal 110 receives themessage at operation 570 in response to the message transmitted atoperation 520, and if the allowed NSSAI is not included in thecorresponding message, it can be known that the allowed NSSAI receivedfrom the existing old AMF 135 can be used as it is.

Further, if the allowed NSSAI finally decided by the new AMF 130 is thesame as the allowed NSSAI that the existing old AMF 135 allocated to theterminal 110, the new AMF 130 may not include the allowed NSSAI in theregistration accept message, but may include an indication indicatingthat they are the same. That is, the terminal 110 receives the messagein operation 570, in response to the message transmitted in operation520, and if the allowed NSSAI is not included in the correspondingmessage, but the indication is included therein, it can be known thatthe allowed NSSAI received from the existing old AMF 135 can be used asit is.

Further, if the allowed NSSAI finally decided by the new AMF 130 is thesame as the allowed NSSAI that the existing old AMF 135 allocated to theterminal 110, the new AMF 130 may include the allowed NSSAI in theregistration accept message.

FIG. 6 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a TAU with a slice changeprocess according to an embodiment. Specifically, FIG. 6 indicates acase where the registration type is Registration type=“mobilityregistration update”, i.e., slices that can be used by the terminal 110are changed due to a tracking area update (TAU). In operations 610 and620, the terminal 110 may transmit the registration request message tothe AMF 130, and in this case, it may configure the registration type tothe mobility registration update. In operations 630 and 640, the AMF 130transmits the registration accept message, via the RAN 120, to theterminal 110. The registration accept message includes the allowedNSSAI. At this time, the case where the slices are changed may be thecase where the allowed NSSAI included in the registration accept messagein operation 640 is different from the allowed NSSAI previouslyallocated to the terminal 110. The terminal 110 having received theregistration accept message in operation 640 recognizes that the usableslices have been changed in a new registration area. In this case, theAMF 130 starts a slice change timer as it sends the registration requestmessage in operation 630. The terminal 110 having received theregistration accept message resends the registration request message tothe AMF 130, and in this case, the registration type is configured to“service registration update” (operations 650 and 660). Further, anindication indicating the slice change cause may be configured to“NW-triggered slice change”, and the configured indication may beincluded in the registration request message. Further, the registrationtype may be configured to “NW-triggered slice change”. In this case, theabove-described indication is not included. The registration request mayinclude the allowed NSSAI received in operation 640. The AMF 130 havingreceived the registration request message in operation 660 may recognizethat the NSSAI value included in the registration request message is theallowed NSSAI value sent through the registration accept message inoperation 630 in view of the indication value included in theregistration request message or the registration type value, i.e.,“NW-triggered slice change”, and may omit the authentication process. Inoperations 670/680, the registration accept message is sent in responseto the registration request message received in operations 650/660, andthe finally decided allowed NSSAI may be or may not be included in theregistration accept message. That is, because the allowed NSSAI sent bythe network 130 in operation 630 is finally decided by the terminal 110through resending thereof in operation 650, the slice authenticationprocess performed by the existing AMF 130 can be reduced.

FIG. 7 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an NW-triggered slicechange process according to an embodiment.

FIG. 7 indicates a slice change triggered by a 5G CN (710). The AMF 130sends the allowed NSSAI that is changed slice information to theterminal 110 at operations 720/730. In this case, the AMF 130 starts aslice change timer as it sends a registration management (RM) requestmessage in operation 720. The terminal 110 having received the messageresends the registration request message to the AMF 130, and in thiscase, the registration type is configured to “service registrationupdate” (operations 740 and 750). Further, the indication indicating theslice change cause may be configured to “NW-triggered slice change”, andthe configured indication may be included in the registration requestmessage. Further, the registration type may be configured to“NW-triggered slice change”. In this case, the above-describedindication is not included. The registration request may include theallowed NSSAI received at operation 730. The AMF 130 having received themessage in operation 750 may recognize that the NSSAI value included inthe registration request message is the allowed NSSAI value sent throughthe RM request in operation 720 in view of the indication value includedin the registration request message or the registration type value thatis “NW-triggered slice change”, and may omit the authentication process.In operations 760/770, the AMF 130 may send to the terminal 110 theregistration accept message in response to the registration requestmessage in operations 650/660, and the finally decided allowed NSSAI maybe or may not be included in the registration accept message. That is,because the allowed NSSAI sent by the network 130 in operation 720 isfinally decided by the terminal 110 through resending thereof inoperation 740, the slice authentication process performed by theexisting AMF 130 can be reduced.

FIG. 8 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a UE-triggered slice changeprocess according to an embodiment.

FIG. 8 indicates a UE-triggered slice change (810). If the terminal 110desires to use another slice while using a slice service throughaccessing of a 5G CN (operation 810), it configures the registrationtype to “service registration update” as it sends a registration requestmessage to an AMF 130 (operations 820 and 830). In this case, networkslice selection assistance information (NSSAI) that is network sliceinformation to be newly used by the terminal 110 or requested NSSAI maybe included in the registration request message. The AMF 130 havingreceived the registration request message determines slices to beprovided to the terminal 110, i.e., allowed NSSAI, in consideration ofsubscription information of the terminal 110, the policy of a mobilecommunication service provider, and a 5G RAN 120/CN network situation,and transfers a registration accept message including the correspondinginformation to the terminal 110 (operations 840 and 850).

Embodiment 2

Hereinafter, terms for identifying a connection node, terms for callingnetwork entities, terms for calling messages, terms for calling aninterface between network entities, and terms for calling various piecesof identification information, as used in the following description, areexemplified for convenience in explanation. Accordingly, the presentdisclosure is not limited to the terms to be described later, but otherterms for calling subjects having equal technical meanings may be used.

Hereinafter, for convenience in explanation, terms and titles that aredefined in the 5G system standards are used in the present disclosure.However, the present disclosure is not limited by the terms and titles,but can be equally applied to systems following other standards.Further, a non-3gpp access includes an access through WiFi, and may beequally applied with respect to other accesses excluding the accessthrough 5G.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a structure in which aterminal accesses a 5G network of the same PLMN through a 3gpp accessand a non-3gpp access. In particular, FIG. 9 also illustrates astructure in which the terminal uses a common AMF by performing anaccess through the 3gpp access and the non-3gpp access.

Referring to FIG. 9 , if a terminal accesses a 5G core network through a3gpp access, that is, a 5G RAN, and simultaneously accesses the 5G corenetwork of the same PLMN through a non-3gpp access, a common AMF isselected. The terminal accesses the 5G core network through the 3gppaccess and the non-3gpp access, and the common performs registrationmanagement with respect to the 3gpp and non-3gpp.

Here, an N3IWF is 5G core network equipment defined for smoothinterlocking between the non-3gpp access and the 5G core network, and isan entity that serves to forward a NAS message or datatransmitted/received through the non-3gpp access. The N3IWF is alsocalled ngPDG. A session management function (SMF) is an entity servingto manage the session and to allocate an IP address to the terminal, anda user plane function (UPF) serves to forward user data under thecontrol of the SMF.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a cellular networkstructure using different AMFs if a PLMN of a 3gpp access is differentfrom a PLMN of an N3IWF when a terminal performs an access through the3gpp access and a non-3gpp access.

Referring to FIG. 10 , if a terminal accesses a 5G core network througha 3gpp access, that is, a 5G RAN, and simultaneously accesses the 5Gcore network through a non-3gpp access, an N3IWF selected by theterminal for this may be in a PLMN that is different from the PLMN ofthe 3gpp access, and different AMFs perform registration management withrespect to the 3gpp access and the non-3gpp access. In this case, thereis a possibility that traffic steering for the terminal or handoverbetween the 3gpp access and the non-3gpp access is not supported.

As illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 , a process in which the terminalselects the N3IWF through the non-3gpp access during the network accessmay exert an influence on the registration management and the sessionmanagement. For this, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a method for efficiently selecting the N3IWF will bedescribed below. Although it is exemplified below that the non-3gppaccess is an untrusted non-3gpp access in the present disclosure, it isapparent that the present disclosure can be applied even in case ofaccessing a 5G network through a trusted non-3gpp access.

FIG. 11 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process in which aterminal selects an N3IWF to access a 5G network through a non-3gppaccess, when the terminal is in a home country, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 11 , if a terminal (or UE) 1110 intends to access a 5Gnetwork through a non-3gpp access, the terminal 1110 having acquired anIP connectivity selects the N3IWF to have an access to the 5G network,selects an AMF through the selected N3IWF, and makes registration in anetwork through a registration process.

For this, when selecting the N3IWF, the terminal 1110 determines its ownlocation, e.g., the terminal 1110 can determine whether the terminal1110 is in a home country or in a visited country through PLMNinformation of a network being accessed through the 3gpp access, GPSinformation, or IP address information provided through the non-3gppaccess. Herein, a home country indicates a country to which a homepublic land mobile network (HPLMN) to which the terminal 1110subscribes, belongs, i.e., an area corresponding to a mobile countrycode (MCC) of the HPLMN. Other areas are referred to as a visitedcountry.

The terminal 1110 identifies that it is in the home country in operation1150, and selects a PLMN in order to discover an N3IWF in operation1155.

In this process, as an embodiment of the present disclosure, if theterminal 1110 is in the home country, it may select the HPLMN as thePLMN for discovering the N3IWF.

As another embodiment of the present disclosure, when the terminal 1110is in the home country, it may select the PLMN for discovering the N3IWFin consideration that the terminal is registered through the 3gppaccess. That is, if the terminal 1110 is not registered through the 3gppaccess, it may select the HPLMN as the PLMN to discover the N3IWF.However, if the terminal 1110 is configured to select in the same PLMNwith respect to the 3gpp access and the non-3gpp access, and the PLMN ofthe 3gpp access is included in N3IWF selection information when theterminal 1110 is registered through the 3gpp access, the terminal 1110may select the PLMN being accessed through the 3gpp access as the PLMNto discover the N3IWF. However, if the terminal 1110 is not configuredto select in the same PLMN with respect to the 3gpp access and thenon-3gpp access, or the PLMN of the 3gpp access is not included in theN3IWF selection information, the terminal 1110 may select the HPLMN.

The configuration for the terminal to select the same PLMN with respectto the 3gpp access and the non-3gpp access may be included in a UEpolicy received from the HPLMN or may be directly configured in theterminal 1110. The UE policy may be included, e.g., in the N3IWFselection information, and it may include an indication of whether thereis a roaming agreement permitting registration through the non-3gppaccess for roaming with respect to respective PLMNs included in theN3IWF selection information.

Further, the UE policy may include an indication of whether the terminal1110 can select the PLMN of the 3gpp access with respect to theregistration for the non-3gpp access in the home country.

Accordingly, the roaming agreement permits the registration through thenon-3gpp access with respect to the PLMN accessed by the terminal 1110through the 3gpp access, or if the terminal 1110 is configured to selectthe PLMN of the 3gpp access with respect to the registration for thenon-3gpp access in the home country, the terminal 1110 may select thePLMN accessed through the 3gpp access as the PLMN to discover the N3IWF.Otherwise, the terminal 1110 may select the HPLMN as the PLMN todiscover the N3IWF. Of course, if the PLMN accessed through the 3gppaccess is the HPLMN, the terminal 1110 selects the HPLMN as the PLMN todiscover the N3IWF.

If the terminal 1110 is unable to discover the N3IWF, even in the HPLMN,it cannot proceed with the N3IWF any further, and does not support the5G network connection through the non-3gpp access.

On the other hand, if the PLMN to discover the N3IWF is selected in theabove-described process, the terminal 1110 configures a fully qualifieddomain name (FQDN) for the N3IWF in the selected PLMN (operation 1160).If there is an IP address of the N3IWF or the FQDN in the N3IWFidentifier configuration in a state where the selected PLMN is theHPLMN, the terminal selects the N3IWF using this. If there is networkslice information, e.g., S-NSAI information, supported by the respectiveN3IWFs in the N3IWF identifier configuration, the terminal 1110 selectsthe N3IWF using the IP address of the N3IWF or the FQDN coinciding withthe network slice that the terminal intends to use.

If the selected PLMN is not the HPLMN, but is included in the N3IWFselection information, the terminal 1110 identifies whether the FQDN tobe used in the selected PLMN is a tracking area identity (TAI) FQDN oran operator identifier FQDN. If the TAI FQDN is to be used, the terminal1110 configures the FQDN of the N3IWF including the TAI information ofthe 3gpp access based on the location of the terminal 1110. In thiscase, if the terminal 1110 cannot acquire the TAI information, itconfigures the operator identifier, which is the FQDN of the N3IWFincluding the PLMN information, or MCC and mobile network code (MNC)information.

The terminal 1110 sends a DNS query to a DNS server 1120 based on theconfigured FQDN (operation 1165), and receives a DNS response includinga list of the N3IWFs for the corresponding FQDN (operation 1170).

The list of the N3IWFs included in the DNS response includes all or partof the PLMN information to which the respective N3IWFs belong, TAIinformation, IP address information of the N3IWF, network sliceinformation (e.g., S-NSSAI information) supported by the N3IWF, and loadinformation on the N3IWF.

The terminal 1110 selects a suitable N3IWF from the N3IWF list receivedfrom the DNS response using the network slice intended to be serviced bythe terminal itself, N3IWF load information, and TAI or PLMN information(operation 1175).

On the other hand, the network slice information supported by the N3IWFindicates information on network slice(s) supported by the AMF or AMFgroup connected to the N3IWF.

The terminal 1110 having selected the N3IWF in operation 1175 performsconnection setup with the corresponding N3IWF, and in this case, if theconnection setup has failed, selects another N3IWF through operation1175. However, if connection setup for all the N3IWFs has failed in theselected PLMN (operation 1180), the terminal 1110 selects again theHPLMN (operation 1190), and performs operation 1160 and subsequentoperations.

As another embodiment of the present disclosure, if the connection setupwith the N3IWF accessed by the terminal 1110 has failed, thecorresponding N3IWF selects another suitable N3IWF in the same network,and transfers IP address information of the corresponding N3IWF, IDinformation of the N3IWF, or location information of the N3IWF to theterminal 1110 to make the terminal 1110 select the corresponding N3IWF.

In contrast, if the connection setup with the N3IWF has succeeded, theterminal 1110 performs the remaining registration procedure (operation1185).

FIG. 12 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process in which aterminal selects an N3IWF to access a 5G network through a non-3gppaccess, when the terminal is in a visited country, according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 12 , if a terminal (or UE) 1110 intends to access a 5Gnetwork through a non-3gpp access, the terminal 1110 having acquired anIP connectivity selects the N3IWF to have an access to the 5G network,selects an AMF through the selected N3IWF, and makes registration in anetwork through a registration process.

For this, in the process of selecting the N3IWF, the terminal 1110grasps its own location, and for example, the terminal 1110 can graspwhether the terminal 1110 is in a home country or in a visited countrythrough PLMN information of a network being accessed through the 3gppaccess, GPS information, or IP address information provided through thenon-3gpp access. Here, the home country means a country to which anHPLMN to which the terminal 1110 subscribes belongs, that is, an areacorresponding to a mobile country code (MCC) of the HPLMN, and otherareas are called a visited country.

If it is determined that the terminal 1110 is in the visited country asin operation 1210, the terminal 1110 determines a condition that whetherthe terminal itself is registered through the 3gpp access, and whetherthe PLMN accessed through the 3gpp is included in N3IWF selectioninformation (operation 1215). If either of the above-describedconditions is not satisfied, the terminal 1110 performs a DNS-baseddiscovery of regularity requirement process (operation 1255). TheDNS-based discovery of regularity requirement process selects the N3IWFin the same manner as an ePDG selection procedure of 3gpp TS23.402.

However, if both the above-described conditions are satisfied, theterminal 1110 selects the PLMN of the 3gpp access as the PLMN todiscover the N3IWF (operation 1220), and configures the FQDN for theN3IWF in the selected PLMN (operation 1225).

That is, the terminal 1110 identifies whether the FQDN to be used in theselected PLMN is a TAI FQDN or an operator identifier FQDN. If the TAIFQDN is to be used, the terminal 1110 configures the FQDN of the N3IWFincluding the TAI information of the 3gpp access based on the locationof the terminal 1110. If the terminal 1110 cannot acquire the TAIinformation, it configures the operator identifier, which is the FQDN ofthe N3IWF including the PLMN information, or MCC and MNC information.

The terminal 1110 sends a DNS query to a DNS server 1120 based on theconfigured FQDN in operation 1230, and receives a DNS response includinga list of N3IWFs for the corresponding FQDN in operation 1235.

The list of the N3IWFs included in the DNS response includes all or partof the PLMN information to which the respective N3IWFs belong, TAIinformation, IP address information of the N3IWF, network sliceinformation (e.g., S-NSSAI information) supported by the N3IWF, and loadinformation on the N3IWF.

In operation 1240, the terminal 1110 selects a suitable N3IWF from theN3IWF list received from the DNS response using the network sliceintended to be serviced by the terminal, N3IWF load information, and TAIor PLMN information. On the other hand, the network slice informationsupported by the N3IWF indicates information on network slice(s)supported by the AMF or AMF group connected to the N3IWF.

The terminal 1110 having selected the N3IWF in operation 1240 performsconnection setup with the corresponding N3IWF, and in this case, if theconnection setup has failed, it selects another N3IWF through operation1240. However, if connection setup for all the N3IWFs has failed in theselected PLMN (operation 1245), the terminal 1110 performs operation1255 to select another PLMN.

As another embodiment of the present disclosure, if the connection setupwith the N3IWF accessed by the terminal 1110 has failed, thecorresponding N3IWF selects another suitable N3IWF in the same network,and transfers IP address information of the corresponding N3IWF, IDinformation of the N3IWF, or location information of the N3IWF to theterminal 1110 to make the terminal 1110 select the corresponding N3IWF.

In contrast, if the connection setup with the N3IWF has succeeded, theterminal 1110 performs the remaining registration procedure (operation1250).

FIG. 13 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a process of transferringUE configuration information, such as N3IWF selection information, to aterminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 13 , the terminal 1110 stores UE configurationinformation, such as N3IWF selection information, and uses the storedinformation in an N3IWF selection process, e.g., as in the embodimentsdescribed with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12 above.

The UE configuration information may be stored in a USIM of the terminal1110, may be configured by a user in the terminal 1110, or may betransferred from the network when the terminal 1110 is accessing or hasaccessed the 5G network in operation 1310. For example, a policy controlfunction (PCF) 1140 may directly transfer configuration information ofthe corresponding UE to the terminal 1110 through Open Mobile AllianceDevice Management (OMA-DM), and for example, through home access networkdiscovery and selection function (H-ANDSF) in operation 1320. Further,if the PCF 1140 transfers the UE configuration information to the AMF1130, the AMF 1130 may transfer the UE configuration informationreceived through a NAS message to the terminal 1110 (operations 1130 and1140). Further, the terminal may transmit a response (UE policyprovisioning ACK) to the AMF 1130, and the AMF 1130 may transmit theresponse to the PCF 1140 (operations 1350 and 1360).

On the other hand, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the UEconfiguration information, such as the N3IWF selection information, mayinclude following information.

UE Configuration (e.g. N3IWF Selection Information)

-   -   Preferred PLMN list (ordered);    -   For each PLMN, indication on whether TAI FQDN is supportive or        not);    -   For each PLMN, indication on whether there is a roaming        agreement on registration via non-3GPP access;    -   Indication on whether UE select PLMN of 3GPP access or not in        home country.

Accordingly, in the embodiments as described above with reference toFIGS. 11 and 12 , the N3IWF selection information may be used, and theinformation may also be included in subscription information of theterminal.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure as described above,constituent elements included in the present disclosure are expressed ina singular form or in a plural form. However, such a singular or pluralexpression is selected to suit a situation presented for convenience inexplanation, and thus the present disclosure is not limited to suchsingular or plural constituent elements. Even plural constituentelements may be expressed in a singular form, and even a singleconstituent element may be expressed in a plural form.

On the other hand, although detailed embodiments of the presentdisclosure have been described in the specification and drawings, itwill be apparent that various modifications are possible within thescope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the scope of the presentdisclosure should not be limited to the embodiments as described above,but should be defined by the appended claims below and those equivalentto the scope of the claims.

Embodiment 3

In describing embodiments of the present disclosure in detail, althougha radio connection network in which 5G network standards are determinedby 3GPP, a new RAN(NR) that is a core network, and a packet core (5Gsystem, 5G core network, or next-generation core (NG Core)) will be themain subject, the primary gist of the present disclosure can also beapplied to other communication systems having similar technicalbackgrounds through slight modifications thereof in a range that doesnot greatly deviate from the scope of the present disclosure by thejudgment of those skilled in the art to which the present disclosurepertains.

Hereinafter, for convenience in explanation, terms and titles defined inthe 3^(rd) generation partnership project long term evolution (3GPP)standards may be partially used. However, the present disclosure is notlimited to such terms and titles, but may also be applied to systemsfollowing other standards in the same manner.

In 5G mobile communication services defined in 3GPP, there are functionsproviding optimized services based on the location of a terminal. Forexample, if a traffic path is corrected to a UPF close to an area inwhich the terminal is located, the terminal can send and receive data athigher speeds. As another example, in order to support mobile edgecommunications, a terminal in a specific area may be made to access aspecific UPF and an AS to use services. For this, the 3GPP supports thefollowing functions.

-   -   Function of identifying location information of a terminal in a        core network    -   Function of notifying an AS of location information of a        terminal in a core network

Based on these functions, an application server (AS) (or applicationfunction (AF)) may perform following functions.

-   -   Function in which an AS establishes or changes a session of a        terminal to use a UPF close to the location of the terminal        through triggering    -   Function in which an AS changes a QoS used in case of using a        UPF close to the location of the terminal through triggering    -   Function of requesting billing policy change according to the        current location of the terminal    -   Function of activating a local data network usable according to        the current location of the terminal

The above-described functions are activated when the AS determines aspecific condition and sends a corresponding request to a core network.This means that combinations of the above-described functions areperformed through individual transactions for respective events. If theAS repeatedly performs the above-described session establishment,session change, QoS change, billing change, and local data networkactivation in the core network with respect to the same condition, thismay cause an inefficient signaling.

The present disclosure proposes that the AS configures conditions forspecific events and corresponding operation lists to a PCF or networkexposure function (NEF), and executes an operation for a configuredevent after the PCF/NEF detects a specific event of the terminal.Accordingly, it is not necessary for the AS to repeatedly trigger a newfunction through reception of a notification for the event of theterminal. Because the AS configures a specific event combination of theterminal and the corresponding operation list to the core network, thecore network itself can perform the operation to match the event of theterminal, and then notify the AS of this.

Explanation of entities appearing in the present disclosure is asfollows.

A terminal (UE) is connected to a radio access network (RAN) andaccesses a device that performs a mobility management function of a 5Gcore network device. In the present disclosure, this is called an accessand mobility management function (AMF). This may call a function or adevice taking charge of an access of the RAN and the mobility managementof the terminal in all. The AMF serves to route a terminal sessionrelated message to a session management function (SMF). The AMF isconnected to the SMF, and the SMF is connected to a user plane function(UPF) and establishes a tunnel for transmitting data between a basestation and the UPF through allocation of a user plane resource to beprovided to the terminal. In the present disclosure, the calling of theAMF may mean a core network device providing mobility management for theterminal, that is, a device receiving a NAS message of the terminalhaving a different title. For convenience, in the present disclosure, itis called the access mobility management function (AMF).

NEF is an abbreviation of a network exposure function, and serves toconnect a 3GPP core network device to an external device.

PCF is a core network device serving to manage and apply policy, and canperform enforcement to apply the policy or rule for the session used bythe terminal.

AF is an abbreviation of an application function, and may means anapplication related function located inside a 3gpp network or anapplication server (AS) located outside the 3gpp network.

First Embodiment

FIG. 14 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a procedure in which an AFprovides an event and a rule through a PCF, and the PCF applies them tomatch the event of a terminal, according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 14 , an AF 1416 may send a request to the 3GPP networkto provide, to a terminal 1410, a mobile edge communication (MEC)service, a data network usable only in a specific location, or anon-billing service provided in the specific location.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the AF 1416 may configure acertain condition or an event that can be identified by the terminal1410 in the 3GPP network. The event condition (per UE) may configure thefollowing items:

-   -   UE location and accuracy (e.g., a Cell ID, a gNB ID, a TAI,        geographical information, or an MCC);    -   data network name (DNN) and NSSAI;    -   Application ID; and    -   target IP address and port number.

The UE location indicates location information of the terminal 1410 thatcan be identified in the 3GPP network. The accuracy indicatesgranularity for the corresponding location information. Accordingly, theUE location may be determined in the 3GPP network as a cell ID unit, abase station (gNB) ID unit, a TAI unit, specific GPS information, orspecific country code information (e.g., MCC). The AF 1416 requestslocation information of the terminal 1410, e.g., ID #1, and theinscription of corresponding granularity that is the cell ID or gNB ID.Accordingly, the 3GPP network can identify what ID of what granularitythe location information condition of the terminal 1410 sent by the AF1416 corresponds to. Specifically, if the AF 1416 requests the locationof the terminal 1410 as GPS information and requests the locationinformation of the terminal 1410 as specific granularity, the 3GPP corenetwork device (PCF 1415 or NEF 1418) determines the cell ID, basestation ID, or TAI corresponding to the specific GPS information bymapping and stores it.

DNN is a data network name, and calls a packet data network accessed bythe terminal 1410. Because the terminal 1410 establishes a PDU sessionin a specific DNN, the AF 1416 may configure what DNN the terminal 1410uses as a condition or an event. Accordingly, the AF 1416 may alsoconfigure what is the DNN used by the terminal 1410 as a condition or anevent. Similarly, the NSSAI may configure the network slice informationused by the terminal 1410 as a condition of an event.

App. ID means an application ID used by the terminal 1410. This is usedin the form of an App ID for the operating system (OS) used by theterminal 1410, e.g., in the form of an OS-App-ID. The AF 1416 mayconfigure the App ID used by the terminal 1410 as a condition or anevent, and may request the terminal 1410 to perform a certain operationwhen the terminal 1410 uses the PDU session using a certain App ID.

The target IP address and the port number indicate an address of theapplication server accessed and used by the terminal 1410 and the portnumber. The AF 1416 may route a service being provided to the terminal1410 to a specific server, and in this case, the terminal 1410 sendsuplink data through allocation of the corresponding target IP addressand IP port as the destination IP address and port. Because the 3GPPnetwork can determine what condition is satisfied or what event occursby identifying the destination IP address and port of data sent by theterminal 1410, the AF 1416 configures this as the condition or event.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, if aspecific terminal 1410 satisfies a certain condition or an event thatcan be identified in the 3GPP network, the AF 1416 may configure anoperation to be performed in the 3GPP network with respect to theterminal 1410. Herein, operations that can be performed in the 3GPP corenetwork according to a specific condition are referred to as “rules.”However, the names are not limited thereto, and other names meaning theoperations performed in the 3GPP network may be included. The AF 1416may configure a rule profile through a set of rules, and may configurethe following items.

-   -   rule profile    -   data network access identifier (DNAI): identify local UPF    -   Local DNN: Used during generation of a PDU session leading to        local    -   QoS value, charging profile    -   uplink classifier (ULCL)

The DNAI is an identifier identifying a local UPF located in a specificarea. Accordingly, if a certain condition is satisfied, it means anoperation to steer the session of the terminal 1410 to the correspondinglocal UPF.

The local DNN indicates a local data network located in a specific area,and the terminal 1410 may generate and use a new PDU session as thecorresponding DNN. Accordingly, when the terminal 1410 is located in acertain location, it means an operation triggering an access of theterminal 1410 to a certain local DNN. When the terminal 1410 is locatedin a corresponding area, it receives information on the usable localDNN, and uses a data service through requesting of the PDU session forthe received information.

The QoS value represents a QoS of a session used by the terminal 1410.The terminal uses the value as the QoS value to be applied to thesession when traffic is steered into a local UPF located in a specificarea. That is, the QoS value indicates the QoS value to be applied tothe steered session. Further, the QoS value may be a QoS profile for thecorresponding local DNN when the terminal 1410 uses the local DNN.

The charging profile represents billing information that is applied whenthe corresponding UPF traffic is steered. If a path of a session of theterminal 1410 is changed to a UPF of a specific area, the chargingprofile may include information to record whether the service is usedfree or at higher rates, or how long the terminal 1410 uses the localUPF. Further, the charging profile may be billing information for thecorresponding local DNN when the terminal 1410 uses the local DNN.

The ULCL is a classifier for passing the traffic sent by the terminal1410 to the local DN. Accordingly, if the terminal 1410 moves to adetermined location, it means an operation to pass the traffic of theterminal 1410 to the local DN by applying a determined ULCL.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, the AF 1416may configure information on the condition/event and the correspondingoperation/rule in a list to be transferred to the PCF 1415 or NEF 1418.For example, if the terminal 1410 uses a specific DNN and NSSAI when itmoves to Seoul-Daejeon-Daegu-Pusan, information on what DNAI is used inSeoul, what DNAI is used in Daejeon, what QoS value is applied, and howthe bill is made is configured in a list.

Accordingly, with respect to the services that the corresponding AF 1416provides to the terminal 1410, it is not necessary for the AF 1416 toidentify the location of the terminal 1410 every time, in order todetermine how to provide the service, and to request this from the 3GPPcore network, but the AF 1416 requests all conditions and events forservices for each area that can be provided by the AF itself andcorresponding operations of the 3GPP core network. Accordingly, the timerequired for “event discover—operation request—operation performing” inorder to provide an MEC service to the terminal 1410 can be reduced, andinteraction between the 3GPP core network and the AF 1416 can bereduced.

FIG. 14 illustrates a procedure in which an AF provides an event and arule through a PCF, and the PCF applies them to match the event of aterminal.

FIG. 14 illustrates a method in which the AF 1416 provisions an eventand a rule for the terminal 1410 to the PCF 1415, and if thecorresponding event is discovered, the PCF 1415 applies thecorresponding rule and transfers a corresponding notification to the AF1416. The AF 1416 provides the event and the rule as in theabove-described embodiment to the PCF 1415 (operation 1420). The PCF1415 verifies whether the specific terminal 1410 can use them andwhether the AF 1416 requests them, determines whether the AF 1416provides monitoring for the event requested by the AF 1416, anddetermines the rule that can be supported among the rules requested bythe AF 1416 (operation 1425). The PCF 1415 sends a response to the AF1416 with respect to the determined event and rule to confirm performingof the corresponding request (operation 1430).

The PCF 1415 configures a monitoring event to respective core networkdevices, such as AMF 1412, SMF 1413, and UPF 1414, in accordance withthe requested event. For example, monitoring for the location of theterminal 1410 is configured to the AMF 1412, monitoring for a DNN usedby the terminal 1410 is configured to the SMF 1413, and monitoring for atarget IP address to which the terminal 1410 sends data is configured tothe UPF 1414. The PCF 1415 can monitor the App ID used by the terminal1410. Further, the SMF 1413 can monitor the App ID used by the terminal1410. This method is handled in another embodiment.

The terminal 1410 freely moves as using a data service and uses asession in 5G (operation 1440). In this case, if a specific event isdetected by the AMF 1412, SMF 1413, and UPF 1414, the correspondingdevices notify the PCF 1415 of the result of the monitoring (operation1445).

The PCF 1415 determines a rule for the detected event (operation 1450).This is requested by the AF 1416 from the PCF 1415, and is based onevent and rule lists permitted by the PCF 1415.

The PCF 1415 performs PDU session generation, correction, or devicetriggering based on the determined rule (operation 1455). For example,if it is necessary for the terminal 1410 to access a specific local DN,the PCF may guide PDU session generation by device-triggering theterminal, whereas if the terminal 1410 should change the traffic path toa specific local UPF, the PCF may request PDU session correction to theSMF 1413. Further, if the terminal 1410 requests the PDU sessiongeneration from a specific local DN in a specific location, the PCF mayapply a certain QoS or charging.

The PCF 1415 having performed the specific rule may notify the AF 1416of the result of the rule performance (operation 1460).

The operation in which the PCF 1415 performs subscription of the eventwill be described in more detail. If a spatial condition (e.g., spatialcondition on which traffic steering rule is executed when the terminal1410 is located in a specific location) requested by the AF 1416 isreceived, the PCF 1415 may perform one of the following operations.

1) Method by the PCF 1415 for directly grasping the spatial condition(location condition): It is necessary for the PCF 1415 to grasp thecurrent location of the terminal 1410 to apply the traffic steering rulerequested by the AF 1416 in accordance with the current location of theterminal 1410, that is, to steer the traffic of the terminal to aspecific DNAI. Accordingly, the PCF 1415 may subscribe to the event onthe location information of the terminal 1410 from the AMF 1412 or SMF1413.

If the PCF 1415 subscribes to the location monitoring event of theterminal 1410 from the AMF 1412, the PCF 1415 may receive the eventresult for all location changes of the terminal 1410 regardless of thesession actually used by the terminal 1410. Further, the PCF 1415 maydetermine whether the AF 1416 coincides with the spatial condition (orlocation condition) requested by the AF 1416 based on the location ofthe terminal 1410 that is in the received event result, and then mayprovide the traffic steering rule to the SMF 1413 serving thecorresponding terminal 1410.

As another embodiment, the PCF 1415 may subscribe to the event for thelocation information of the terminal 1410 from the SMF 1413. The SMF1413 is the SMF providing the PDU session to the terminal 1410, and thePDU session is a PDU session to which the traffic steering requested bythe AF 1416 should be applied. Because the event result for the locationinformation change of the terminal 1410 transmitted by the correspondingSMF 1413 corresponds to the location change of the correspondingterminal 1410 while the terminal uses the PDU session for the trafficsteering, it is certain that the event is the event that should beapplied to the traffic steering. Accordingly, as compared with a casewhere the PCF 1415 receives a report of the location event from the AMF1412, a case where the PCF 1415 receives a report of the location eventfrom the SMF 1413 corresponds to reception of more certain signaling,and thus unnecessary location event notification of the terminal 1410can be reduced. When the PCF 1415 performs event subscription from theSMF 1413, the PCF 1415 can perform subscription of the event for thespatial condition (or location condition) requested by the AF 1416. Morespecifically, the PCF 1415 may convert the location (or geographicinformation) for the location condition requested by the AF 1416 into3gpp level information (e.g., a cell ID, a base station ID, a trackingarea ID, etc.), and may perform subscription of the event for theconverted location to the SMF 1413. In this case, the PCF 1415 mayconfigure the location information of the 3gpp level mapped on thelocation condition requested by the AF 1416 in a list to subscribe tothe SMF 1413. Accordingly, when the terminal 1410 is located in thecorresponding subscribed area, the PCF 1415 may configure the SMF 1413to transmit the event reporting.

Further, when the terminal 1410 moves out of the subscribed area, thePCF 1415 may configure the SMF 1413 to transmit the event reporting.

When the SMF 1413 is aware of a location change of the terminal 1410with respect to the event subscribed by the PCF 1415, the SMF 1413 maynotify the PCF 1415 of the location information of the correspondingterminal 1410 through an event notification. The SMF 1413 may receivethe location change of the terminal 1410 from the AMF 1412 through theevent notification, or may determine the location change of the terminal1410 in view of the location of the terminal 1410 included in a sessionmanagement message sent by the 5G base station 1411.

Further, the AMF 1412 may include the location information of theterminal 1410 in an N11 interface message including the sessionmanagement message transferred from the 5G base station 1411 in order tosend the N11 interface message, and the SMF 1413 may receive the N11interface message and identify the location information of the terminal1410.

If the PCF 1415 requests an event for a specific location list, i.e., ifthe PCF 1415 configures location information for the DNAI in a list orconfigures location information for the spatial condition requested bythe AF 1416 in a list to perform event subscription to the SMF 1413, theevent notification may be sent to the PCF 1415 when the location changeof the terminal 1410 is identified with respect to the requestedlocation list. More specifically, the event notification may be sentwhen the terminal 1410 is located in the requested location or when theterminal 1410 gets out of the requested location list. Further, theevent notification may be sent when the terminal 1410 gets out of thelocation for one DNAI or when the location of the terminal 1410 ischanged within the requested location. If the event notification isreceived, the PCF 1415 may determine what traffic steering is applied tothe current location of the corresponding terminal 1410, and may steerthe PDU session path of the terminal 1410 by updating the trafficsteering rule or providing the traffic steering rule to the SMF 1413.

2) Method by the PCF 1415 for transferring all spatial conditions to theSMF 1413: The PCF 1415 may provide information on a spatial condition(or location condition) requested by the AF 1416 to a portion of thetraffic steering rule or a policy changing control (PCC) ruletransferred to the SMF 1413, instead of performing event subscription tothe SMF 1413. More specifically, the PCF 1415 may convert the locationinformation (or geographic information) for the location conditionrequested by the AF 1416 into 3gpp level information (e.g., a cell ID, abase station ID, a tracking area ID, etc.), and may configure andtransfer a list for the changed locations to the SMF 1413 as a part ofthe traffic steering rule or a part of the PCC rule. Accordingly, if theterminal 1410 is located in the corresponding area, the traffic steeringrule to match the same can be applied.

In other words, If the PCF 1415 transfers the location condition to theSMF 1413 together with the traffic steering rule, the SMF 1413 maydetermine that the corresponding terminal 1410 is located in a specificarea (e.g., a cell ID, a base station ID, or a tracking area ID), andthen may steer the PDU session of the terminal 1410 to a local accessidentified by the DNAI in accordance with the traffic steering rulecorresponding to the corresponding location condition. Methods by theSMF 1413 for determining the location of the terminal 1410 may includemethods for performing event subscription to the SMF 1412, for viewingthe location of the terminal 1410 included in the SM message sent by thebase station 1411, and for identifying the location of the terminal 1410when the AMF 1412 includes the location of the terminal 1410 in the N11message including the SM message sent by the base station 1411 to besent. If the current location of the terminal 1410 meets the locationcondition for the traffic steering and there is a traffic steering rulefor the corresponding condition, based on the information transferredfrom the PCF 1415, the SMF 1413 may perform a PDU session modificationprocedure to execute the corresponding rule. As another example, the SMF1413 may designate a specific location list transferred from the PCF1415 as an area of interest, and may perform subscription of the eventfor the area of interest to the AMF 1412. In this case, the SMF mayreceive an event notification from the AMF 1412 with respect to thesubscribed location list, and if the location change of the terminal1410 is identified, it may determine to apply the traffic steering ruletransferred from the PCF 1415. More specifically, the SMF 1413 maydesignate specific location information for one DNAI or the locationinformation list as the area of interest, and may perform subscriptionof the corresponding event to the AMF 1412. In this case, if theterminal 1410 moves to a location corresponding to the area of interestor moves out of the corresponding location, the AMF 1412 may notify theSMF 1413 of the location of the terminal 1410, and the SMF 1413 mayselect a new DNAI based on this or may rearrange the UPF 1414. Asanother detailed example, the SMF 1413 may designate the locationinformation list for the DNAI list of the SMF itself as the area ofinterest, and may perform event subscription to the AMF 1412. This is todesignate the area of interest having a wider range than that of theabove-described example, and the SMF 1412 notifies the SMF 1413 of thelocation change of the terminal 1410 moving in the requested area ofinterest, and makes a notification when the terminal 1410 gets out of orenters into the area of interest. Accordingly, if the terminal 1410moves as continuously changing the location thereof outside the area ofinterest, the AMF 1412 may not send the event notification to the SMF1413 (this is because the location change of the terminal outside thearea of interest does not exert an influence on the determinationoperation of the SMF 1413).

3) Method by the PCF 1415 for transferring a DNAI list to the SMF 1413in consideration of an SMF serving area and transferring a spatialcondition to match the same: The PCF 1415 may include the locationcondition for the SMF 1413 as a part of the traffic steering rule or apart of the PCC rule, and this may include only those related to theDNAI transferred to the SMF 1413. That is, the PCF 1415 may know, inadvance, information on an area served by the SMF 1413 and the DNAIaccessible by the SMF 1413 (this may follow the configurationinformation, may be received by the PCF 1415 through negotiation with anetwork repository function (NRF), or may be configured through anoperations, administration, & maintenance (OA&M) device), and the PCF1415 may transfer the location information for the corresponding DNAI tothe SMF 1413 in association. For example, the PCF 1415 may configure theDNAI information and the location information or the locationinformation list corresponding to the corresponding DNAI as 3gpp levellocation information (e.g., a cell ID, a base station ID, and a trackingarea ID) to be transferred to the SMF 1413. Further, the PCF 1415 mayconfigure the corresponding location information or the locationinformation list in association with respect to the traffic steeringrule (rather than the location information corresponding to the DNAI),and may transfer the configured information to the SMF 1413. That is,the PCF 1415 may configure information on performing of a certaintraffic steering rule when the terminal 1410 is located in a certainlocation. In this case, the PCF 1415 may configure the information inassociation with the location condition and an ID using the ID for thetraffic steering rule. When the DNAI and the location information areassociated with each other, or when the traffic steering rule and thelocation information are associated with each other, the PCF 1415 mayassociate the information in consideration of the spatial conditionrequested by the AF 1416. For example, if the AF 1416 requests to steerthe traffic to a specific DNAI when the terminal 1410 enters into aspecific location, the PCF 1415 may associate the DNAI and the locationinformation indicating the corresponding spatial condition with eachother, and may transfer the associated information to the SMF 1413. Asanother example, if the AF 1416 requests to apply a specific trafficsteering rule when the terminal 1410 enters into a specific location,the PCF 1415 may associate the traffic steering rule (e.g., informationidentified as an ID) and the location information with each other, andmay transfer the associated information to the SMF 1413. It is apparentthat the above-described location information can be configured as alist to be transferred to the SMF 1413, and the location information ofeach list is identified as the location condition to determine aspecific DNAI or a specific traffic steering rule. Accordingly, the SMF1413 can identify what DNAI the traffic is steered to when the terminal1410 moves to a certain location. As described above, the SMF 1413having received “the DNAI and the location information indicating thecorresponding location condition” or “the traffic steering rule and thelocation information indicating the corresponding location condition”,in order to know that the corresponding terminal 1410 has moved to aspecific location, may determine the location of the terminal 1410 byreceiving the notification of the location information throughsubscription of the event to the AMF 1412, in view of the locationinformation of the terminal 1410 included in the SM message sent by thebase station 1411, or in view of the location information of an N11message if the N11 message that the AMF 1412 sends to the SMF 1413includes the SM message sent by the base station 1411 and the locationinformation of the terminal 1410. After determining the location of theterminal 1410, the SMF 1413 discovers the corresponding traffic steeringrule or the DNAI from the information transferred by the PCF 1415, andthen may apply the corresponding traffic steering rule or steer the PDUsession of the terminal 1410 to the corresponding DNAI. Accordingly,with respect to the location condition that the PCF itself provides tothe SMF 1413, it is not necessary for the PCF 1415 to perform thelocation determination operation of the terminal 1410, but may apply thetraffic steering through self-determination. If the terminal 1410 movesto a location excluding the condition allocated to the SMF itself, theSMF 1413 may include and notify the PCF 1415 of the location informationof the terminal 1410 in order to request a policy update from the PCF1415. The PCF 1415 having received this may update the traffic steeringrule for the SMF 1413, or may perform an SMF change procedure.

If it is determined that the SMF 1413 for serving the PDU session of thecorresponding terminal 1410 should be changed as the result of theoperation 1), 2), or 3), the PCF 1415 may perform a PDU session releaseto the existing SMF, and may indicate a PDU session establishment to anew SMF. In this case, in accordance with the operation 1), 2), or 3),the PCF 1415 may retransmit all of the traffic steering rule and thecorresponding location condition, or may configure and transfer thespecific location condition in consideration of the SMF serving area.

FIG. 15 is a signal flow diagram illustrating a procedure in which an AFprovides an event and a rule through an NEF, and the NEF applies them tomatch the event of a terminal, according to an embodiment. FIG. 15illustrates a method in which an NEF 1418 performs the operation asillustrated in FIG. 14 instead. The AF 1416 provides the event and therule as in the above-described embodiment to the NEF 1418 (operation1510). The NEF 1418 verifies whether this request can be applied withrespect to the specific terminal 1410 through negotiation with a unifieddata management (UDM) 1417, verifies that the AF 1416 can request this,determines whether the AF 1416 provides monitoring for the eventrequested by the AF 1416, and determines the rule that can be supportedamong the rules requested by the AF 1416 (operation 1520). The NEF 1418sends a response to the AF 1416 with respect to the determined event andrule to identify performing of the corresponding request (operation1530). As a detailed embodiment, the NEF 1418 may perform theverification and permission procedure with the PCF 1415.

The NEF 1418 configures a monitoring event to respective core networkdevices, i.e., the AMF 1412, the SMF 1413, the UPF 1414, and the PCF1415, in accordance with the requested event (operation 1540). Forexample, monitoring for the location of the terminal 1410 is configuredto the AMF 1412, monitoring for a DNN used by the terminal 1410 isconfigured to the SMF 1413, and monitoring for a target IP address towhich the terminal 1410 sends data is configured to the UPF 1414. ThePCF 1415 can monitor the App ID used by the terminal 1410. Further, theSMF 1413 can monitor the App ID used by the terminal 1410. This methodis handled in another embodiment.

The terminal 1410 freely moves while using a data service and uses asession in 5G (operation 1550). In this case, if a specific event isdetected by the AMF 1412, SMF 1413, and/or UPF 1414, the correspondingdevice or devices notify the NEF 1418 of the result of the monitoring(operation 1560).

The NEF 1418 determines a rule for the detected event (operation 1570).This is requested by the AF 1416 from the NEF 1418, and is based onevent and rule lists permitted by the NEF 1418.

The NEF 1418 views the determined rule based on the reported event, andrequests the 3gpp core network device to perform PDU session generation,correction, or device triggering (operation 1580). For example, if it isnecessary for the terminal 1410 to access a specific local DN, the NEF1418 may guide PDU session generation by device-triggering the terminal,whereas if the terminal 1410 should change the traffic path to aspecific local UPF, the NEF 1418 may request PDU session correction fromthe PCF 1415 or SMF 1413. Further, if the terminal 1410 requests the PDUsession generation from the specific local DN in a specific location,the NEF 1418 may request the PCF 1415 to apply a certain QoS orcharging.

The NEF 1418 having performed the specific rule may notify the AF 1416of the result of the rule performance (operation 1590).

As another embodiment of the present disclosure, a method by the PCF1415 for acquiring App ID is as follows.

-   -   The UPF 1414 determines what an application for a destination IP        and a port is through packet filter description or packet        detection, and then notifies the SMF 1413 of this, and the SMF        1413 notifies the PCF 1415 of this.    -   During session generation, the terminal 1410 may include        information on what App ID is used for the PDU session request,        and the SMF 1413 having received this notifies the PCF 1415 of        this.    -   If the AS performs mapping of an AS IP address+port number to        the App ID to transfer the same to the PCF 1415, the PCF 1415        may identify what IP address and port number data is sent to in        view of packets in the PDU session used by the terminal 1410,        and then may determine what App ID data is sent to.

As another embodiment, a method by the PCF 1415 for acquiring UElocation (as requested accuracy) is as follows.

-   -   The PCF 1415 requests event monitoring for the location of the        terminal 1410 from the AMF 1412, and transfers accuracy        information received from the AF 1416 together. The AMF 1412        identifies the location of the terminal 1410 based on the event        monitoring request and corresponding accuracy (whether the level        is a cell level, base station level, or TAI level), and        transfers a report to the PCF 1415.    -   If the PCF 1415 requests event monitoring from the NEF 1418, the        NEF 1418 perform a monitoring event procedure. If an event        occurs, it transfers a corresponding report to the PCF 1415.    -   During session generation/change, the SMF 1413 notifies the PCF        1415 of the current location of the terminal 1410. This can be        determined in view of a user plane of the session used by the        terminal 1410. That is, since the user plane is connected to the        UPF 1414 through the base station 1411, it is possible to grasp        base station unit information.

As another embodiment, a method by the NEF 1418 for acquiring UElocation (as requested accuracy) is as follows.

-   -   The NEF 1418 requests event monitoring for the location of the        terminal 1410 from the AMF 1412, and transfers accuracy        information received from the AF 1416 together. The AMF 1412        determines the location of the terminal 1410 in accordance with        a registration update message sent by the terminal 1410 or a        service request based on the event monitoring request and        corresponding accuracy (whether the level is a cell level, base        station level, or TAI level), and transfers a report to the NEF        1418.    -   The NEF 1418 requests event monitoring for the location of the        terminal 1410 from the SMF 1413. During the session        generation/change, the SMF 1413 notifies the NEF 1418 of the        current location of the terminal 1410. This can be determined in        view of a user plane of the session used by the terminal 1410.        That is, since the user plane is connected to the UPF 1414        through the base station 1411, it is possible to determine base        station unit information.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a terminalaccording to the present disclosure.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a terminal may include atransceiver 1620 and a controller 1610 configured to control the overalloperation of the terminal. Further, the transceiver 1620 may include atransmitter 1623 and a receiver 1625.

The transceiver 1620 may transmit/receive signals with other networkentities.

The controller 1610 may control the terminal to perform any one ofoperations according to the above-described embodiments.

On the other hand, the controller 1610 and the transceiver 1620 may notbe implemented by separate modules, but may be implemented by oneconstituent unit in the form of a single chip. Further, the controller1610 and the transceiver 1620 may be electrically connected to eachother. For example, the controller 1610 may include a circuit, anapplication-specific circuit, and/or at least one processor. Further,operations of the terminal may be implemented by providing a memorydevice storing corresponding program codes therein on a certainconstituent unit in the terminal.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the base stationaccording to the present disclosure.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a base station may include atransceiver 1720 and a controller 1710 configured to control the overalloperation of the base station. Further, the transceiver 1720 may includea transmitter 1723 and a receiver 1725.

The transceiver 1720 may transmit/receive signals with other networkentities.

The controller 1710 may control the base station to perform any one ofoperations according to the above-described embodiments.

On the other hand, the controller 1710 and the transceiver 1720 may notbe implemented by separate modules, but may be implemented by oneconstituent unit in the form of a single chip. Further, the controller1710 and the transceiver 1720 may be electrically connected to eachother. For example, the controller 1710 may include a circuit, anapplication-specific circuit, and/or at least one processor. Further,operations of the base station may be implemented by providing a memorydevice storing corresponding program codes therein on a certainconstituent unit in the base station.

Although not illustrated, a network entity, such as an AMF, an SMF, aUPF, an N3IWF, a home subscriber server (HSS), an NEF, a PCF, an AF,etc., according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include acontroller configured to control the overall operation of the networkentity. Further, the transceiver may include a transmitter and areceiver, and may transmit and receive signals with other networkentities. The controller may control the network entity to perform anyone of operations according to the above-described embodiments. Thecontroller may be electrically connected to the transceiver.

According to the present disclosure, a 5G core network configures afunction in which an AS providing a service to the terminal requests aspecific condition of the terminal in a bundle from the core network,and the core network automates and processes the request from theterminal in accordance with the location and the state of the terminal.Unlike when the core network notifies the AS of the terminal state everytime, and accordingly receives and processes the request from the ASevery time, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, oncethe core network configures a specific event for a specific terminal anda corresponding operation and rule, the core network can perform thecorresponding operation as soon as it determines the terminal state, andthus, can provide the service without separately depending on therequest from the AS. Accordingly, signaling between the AS and the corenetwork can be reduced, and time required for providing thecorresponding service to the terminal can be shortened.

Although detailed embodiments of the present disclosure have beendescribed in the specification and drawings, various modifications arepossible within the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, thescope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the embodimentsas described above, but should be defined by the appended claims belowand their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method performed by a policy control function(PCF) entity in a communication system, the method comprising:receiving, from an application function (AF) entity, a first messageincluding information for selecting a user plane function (UPF) entityfor traffic routing of a terminal and information on a spatial conditionassociated with a location of the terminal; transmitting, to a sessionmanagement function (SMF) entity, a second message to receiveinformation associated with the location of the terminal, wherein theinformation associated with the location of the terminal indicates thatthe terminal entered or left a specific area, and the second messageincludes information on the specific area determined by the PCF entitybased on the spatial condition; receiving, from the SMF entity, a thirdmessage including the information associated with the location of theterminal; and transmitting, to the SMF entity, a fourth message based onthe information associated with the location of the terminal included inthe third message, the fourth message including the information forselecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of the terminal.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting, to the AF entity, afifth message, as a response to the first message; and storing theinformation for selecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of theterminal and the information on the spatial condition associated withthe location of the terminal.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein thefirst message further includes at least one of an identification of theterminal, a data network name, network slice information, or anapplication identifier.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein theinformation for selecting the UPF entity includes information on a datanetwork access identifier (DNAI).
 5. A method performed by a sessionmanagement function (SMF) entity in a communication system, the methodcomprising: receiving, from a policy control function (PCF) entity, afirst message to transmit information associated with a location of aterminal, wherein the information associated with the location of theterminal indicates that the terminal entered or left a specific area,and the first message includes information on the specific areadetermined by the PCF entity based on a spatial condition associatedwith the location of the terminal; identifying the terminal entered orleft the specific area; transmitting, to the PCF entity, a secondmessage including the information associated with the location of theterminal based on the identification; and receiving, from the PCFentity, a third message including information for selecting a user planefunction (UPF) entity for traffic routing of the terminal.
 6. The methodof claim 5, further comprising selecting the UPF entity based on theinformation for selecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of theterminal.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the information forselecting the UPF entity includes information on a data network accessidentifier (DNAI).
 8. A policy control function (PCF) entity in acommunication system, the PCF entity comprising: a transceiver; and acontroller coupled with the transceiver and configured to: receive, froman application function (AF) entity, a first message includinginformation for selecting a user plane function (UPF) entity for trafficrouting of a terminal and information on a spatial condition associatedwith a location of the terminal, transmit, to a session managementfunction (SMF) entity, a second message to receive informationassociated with the location of the terminal, wherein the informationassociated with the location of the terminal indicates that the terminalentered or left a specific area, and the second message includesinformation on the specific area determined by the PCF entity based onthe spatial condition, receive, from the SMF entity, a third messageincluding the information associated with the location of the terminal,and transmit, to the SMF entity, a fourth message based on theinformation associated with the location of the terminal included in thethird message, the fourth message including the information forselecting the UPF entity for traffic routing of the terminal.
 9. The PCFentity of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to:transmit, to the AF entity, a fifth message, as a response to the firstmessage, and store the information for selecting the UPF entity fortraffic routing of the terminal and the information on the spatialcondition associated with the location of the terminal.
 10. The PCFentity of claim 8, wherein the first message further includes at leastone of an identification of the terminal, a data network name, networkslice information, or an application identifier.
 11. The PCF entity ofclaim 8, wherein the information for selecting the UPF entity includesinformation on a data network access identifier (DNAI).
 12. A sessionmanagement function (SMF) entity in a communication system, the SMFentity comprising: a transceiver; and a controller coupled with thetransceiver and configured to: receive, from a policy control function(PCF) entity, a first message to transmit information associated with alocation of a terminal, wherein the information associated with thelocation of the terminal indicates that the terminal entered or left aspecific area, and the first message includes information on thespecific area determined by the PCF entity based on a spatial conditionassociated with the location of the terminal, identify the terminalentered or left the specific area, transmit, to the PCF entity, a secondmessage including the information associated with the location of theterminal based on the identification, and receive, from the PCF entity,a third message including information for selecting a user planefunction (UPF) entity for traffic routing of the terminal.
 13. The SMFentity of claim 12, wherein the controller is further configured toselect the UPF entity based on the information for selecting the UPFentity for traffic routing of the terminal.
 14. The SMF entity of claim12, wherein the information for selecting the UPF entity includesinformation on a data network access identifier (DNAI).